


Golden

by LadyHuron97



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Canon Compliant, Coming of Age, F/M, Fluff, Mutual Pining, POV Third Person, Pianist! Reader, Pining, Reader-Insert, Romantic Fluff, With the exception of the existance of the reader
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-09
Updated: 2020-12-09
Packaged: 2021-03-10 06:15:37
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 18,624
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27979452
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyHuron97/pseuds/LadyHuron97
Summary: She wonders, not for the first time, when it happened that those feelings of friendly affection turned into something much, much deeper. The fact is that Sugawara Koushi -her best friend since they were 5 years old and making mud cakes in the playground of their neighborhood- is just golden, in every single shape and form.In which reader, an aspiring pianist, and Sugawara Koushi are childhood friends. Both support each other through their aspirations and dreams.
Relationships: Sugawara Koushi/Reader
Comments: 12
Kudos: 41





	1. Nostos

**Author's Note:**

> This started off as something, ended up becoming something else entirely, but I think I'm quite happy with the result. I sincerely hope you enjoy reading it. 
> 
> I made a playlist of the songs that inspired me through it, feel free to listen to it as you read. Each chapter is named after a song, and all songs can be found in said playlist.
> 
> Link: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4xI715rt1Lyr1vDEMpEsWe?si=aDYFDAxlQ8m5JyIELAUoOA

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nostos - Jean-Michael Blais

She wonders, not for the first time, when it happened that those feelings of friendly affection turned into something much, much deeper. The fact is that Sugawara Koushi -her best friend since they were 5 years old and making mud cakes in the playground of their neighborhood- is just golden, in every single shape and form.

He illuminated every room he walked in with his warm presence and his calm yet teasing smile.

Or at least he does so in her eyes.

Perhaps it’s always been like that, she was just too young to understand it.

It doesn’t quite make a difference on the way they interact, though, and she’s happy for it. But despite that contentedness, she longs for just a little bit more. To cross the faint line that they had both been dancing around for as long as she could remember. Now, though, there were other things happening around them that seemed to need more of their attention. She knew that whatever was going to happen between them would do so when they were both ready, and she was patient enough to wait a little longer, despite the tingling in her fingertips itching her to hold his hand.

“You know it’s ok to be mad about that first year taking your place as the official setter for the team, right?” She said, looking at him out of the corner of her eyes as they walked together, slowly making their way back home.

He sighed, looking up at the darkening sky as the sun made its way down. “It’s for the best” he said and despite the smile he was forcing into his face, she could tell there was a strain to his voice, “his technique is much better than mine and honestly if he and Hinata can get us to Nationals…”

“You’re underestimating yourself once again” she said, both hurt and annoyed that her friend seemed to not realize how much of an asset he was to his team.

He gave her a half smile as they came to a stop in front of her house, “maybe,” he shrugged, “but the longer we can make it the more games we’ll get to play and I’ll have my moments too”

She rolled her eyes at him but they both chuckled, trying to clear the slightly sad atmosphere. “You’ll still be my favorite player” she said and she noticed how his cheeks blushed slightly and she smiled as she nudged him with her shoulder.

“Thank you” he said softly and they both fell into a comfortable silence as they stood in front of her door.

“Well, I’ll see you tomorrow on the way to school, you don’t have morning practice, right?” she asked and he nodded.

“I’ll pick you up” he smiled.

“Alright, goodnight Suga” she was about to go in and stopped with the door open, turning around and giving him a brief hug. After a second, Suga wrapped his arms around her and hugged his friend tightly.

“Goodnight” he whispered as they both let go and she finally walked inside her house.

He stands there for a minute longer, looking after her and trying to calm his racing heart. This wasn’t a rare occurrence, she was very affectionate towards her friends and him being her oldest, closest friend, had been on the receiving end of a thousand gestures such as hugs. For some reason, though, lately those small things and brief touches had elicited a blush on his cheeks that he could barely control and his heart to jump up to his throat.

It was inevitable, he supposed, falling in love with her. She was there with him almost all his life; he could barely remember a time before her contagious laughter had made itself an everyday sound that he looked forward to hear as he woke up.

Sighing, he walked up the steps to his own house, saying a quick hello to his mother who was currently getting dinner ready before walking towards his room.

Leaving his school bag on his desk, his gaze briefly flew through the collage of photographs he had on top of his bed. Pictures with Asahi and Daichi from when they had first joined the volleyball team at Karasuno. With the team during their first and second years – they’d have to update the picture now with the new first years. His eyes lingered on a picture of him with her, a simple selfie that she had snapped without him being ready for it, her glowing smile at the front and him looking slightly confused behind her. As unflattering as it was, he couldn’t help but treasure it – quite frankly he didn’t really care about how he looked in the picture, his focus was more on her bright eyes and a familiar, comforting smile.

He knew that no matter what happened with the volleyball team – or with the rest of his life- he could count on her to be there supporting him. All that did was increase his feelings, and despite him liking the way things were right now, he couldn’t help but hope for more. He just didn’t know if she’d want that and he wasn’t a hundred percent sure of being ready to cross a line that could not be uncrossed.


	2. Il

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Il - Jean-Michael Blais

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I'm not a musician, just a very big fan of all kinds of music - and I so with I could play the piano- so I apologize in advance if any of my descriptions are unaccurate. 
> 
> All of my respect and love to all of you musicians out there. 
> 
> Also, the Game of Thrones OST is one of my favorites out there so that's where that came from.

Her hands were gently gliding along the keys, the soft tune she was playing surrounded her in the silent room. Long, dexterous fingers pressing each of the keys perfectly to create a sound that was both calming and exhilarating at the same time.

The energy she felt, coming directly from her core was flowing through her whole body as she swayed gently to the rhythm of the song as it reached its peak making it so that the world dissolved around her. The tempo of the song went up as her fingers danced rapidly back and forward. She breathed out slowly as she pressed the final keys, slowing down her tempo, her eyes closed as her fingers rested lightly on the last note.

“Wonderful” a familiar voice said from behind her with a soft clap and she turned around to face her piano tutor. The white-haired man smiled kindly at her and she blushed at having completely forgotten she was not alone in the classroom.

“Sakamoto-sensei” she bowed, “thank you, but I think there’s still some room to improve, there were some keys that I didn’t quite reach on time”

“True enough, but I believe you’re more than ready to move on to more complex compositions” he said, walking up to her. Despite his age, Sakamoto-sensei was a tall man and even standing up she had to crane her neck slightly up to be able to look him in the face. His warm smile never left his face as he sat down on the bench next to her with his arms crossed in front of his chest. “the recital is coming soon, there will be representatives from many important Liberal Arts and Music Academies from all over the country there”

She knew, she was well aware of it and her heart hadn’t been particularly calm lately thanks to it. Koushi was doing all he could to help calm her but the gods knew the poor boy also had his own important tournaments to stress about. She felt guilty about not being able to fully support him as the recital grew closer and preparations and rehearsals became more intense.

“I want you to join the orchestra for the final piece” Sakamoto-sensei looked at her earnestly. The smile had faded and in its place was an expression that she knew left no room for her to argue. His mind had been made up. She felt like she both paled and blushed at the same time as her stomach filled with butterflies at the thought. She hadn’t ever played in a full ensemble. The closest she had been was when she had helped the school theatre kids when their official pianist had gotten ill at the last minute during last year’s Cultural Festival.

“A-are you sure it’s a good idea?” she asked, looking down at her hands, “I mean, I wouldn’t want to take Higurashi-san’s place as the official pianist for the orchestra”

“She has left the Academy, transferred to a University in the United States” the man next to her explained and she swallowed thickly. Higurashi Kaede was the best pianist she had ever seen live in the Miyagi prefecture. Morioka Musical Academy had become one of the greatest in the northern side of the country and it was in no small part thanks to her talents bringing up the whole ensemble. “There is no other student in this academy that I think could take her place other than you, you’d have a solo piece and the final piece along with the orchestra”

She mulled over her options for a second. She could say no, just take the solo that she had already rehearsed for and be done with it. She knew that she’d still be able to call the attention of some of the recruiters with it. Humility was a virtue she possessed, but she was also aware that she wasn’t just an average piano player -she had worked hard all her life to get to where she was and along with her talent, her dedication had been fruitful-. Nonetheless… playing with an orchestra would probably help her quite a lot as well. Recruits were interested in people who worked not only alone but with big ensembles of musicians. Not everyone could rise like that and there was a big chance of getting lost in the crowd -especially with wind or chord instruments, that tended to be in focus in such performances- but with the piano she could really bring the whole orchestra together.

Taking a big breath, she made up her mind and looked at her mentor with a smile on her face.

“What song are we playing?”

* * *

“Are you home yet?” she asked on the phone as she sat back on her bed, a towel around her shoulders as her wet hair fell down on it, collecting drops of water.

“Not yet, the practice match ended a little bit later than we expected” Suga sighed on the other end of the line, “I’m making my way back now though, why?”

“I was wondering if I could drop by your house, I have news to tell you” she said, barely able to contain her smile.

After telling Sakamoto-sensei that she’d play with the orchestra, he had shown her the piece they had chosen for the recital and she couldn’t have been more excited about it. She was nervous as hell, of course, but the idea of playing that specific song -it was one of the longest pieces she had learned- had made a spike of adrenaline course through her that gave a special spring to her steps as she made her way home. She couldn’t wait to tell Suga, she just knew her best friend would be just as excited as her.

“Well, I could drop by your house before going to mine” he said and her smile softened at his words.

They hadn’t seen much of each other lately, both being twice as busy as ever after the volleyball team had lost the Inter High against Aoba Johsai. The team had doubled up on their practices and matches and were even going to go to a few training camps in Tokyo during the summer. She was not at all surprised when Suga, Daichi and Asahi told her that they were going to stay on the team until the Spring Tournament. She couldn’t have been prouder of them if she tried.

Not only that, but her rehearsals had doubled up as well and that, coupled with her studying for the entrance exams for college, she had less and less free time to spend with anyone lately. She was thankful that she could still hang out with him in school though, and on the occasional study dates they had whenever they both had free time.

“I’ll be waiting, then” she answered.

“Be there in 10” he said and they both hung up the phone as she finished blow-drying her hair.

A few minutes later the doorbell rang and she ran down the stairs, yelling at her mother that she would get it as she flung the door open to find her best friend standing there with that kind smile that tugged at her heart. He looked tired, but happy, and so she smiled at him and pulled him in for a quick hug as she motioned for him to come in.

He put on the pair of slippers he had left there for every time he came and they both walked into the living room as he quickly greeted her mother.

“So? What did you want to tell me that you couldn’t tell me on the phone?” he asked and then, putting on one of his more teasing smiles, “Or is it that you just missed my face so much and couldn’t think of another excuse to come see me?”

She snorted despite the blush that crept up her cheeks, “oh shush, I’d see you tomorrow in class anyway, I can’t seem to escape your quirky face”

He nudged her as they both sat on the small bench by the old piano tucked into one of the corners of the room. Her fingers softly opened the top of the piano, revealing the worn and loved keys that she had started to play in since she was a toddler. Playing a few soft notes, she smiled at her friend.

“Higurashi-san left the Academy” she started and he looked at her with a cocked eyebrow as if telling her to keep going. She bit her lip in excitement and Suga couldn’t help but smile at the way her eyes twinkled. “The spot for the orchestral piano is open, for the recital, and Sakamoto-sensei asked me to fill it up, he said he couldn’t think of anyone better to do it” She could barely contain herself now. Her mother had cried in happiness when she had told her, but she had controlled her excitement up until now. Seeing Suga’s face lighting up as she told him was breaking her resolve and she could feel the tell-tale prickle of tears as he started congratulating her profusely.

“I-I can’t believe this!” he started, grabbing both her shoulders as he stood up with her and spun her around, bringing her flush against his chest in a hug, “I mean of course I can, you’re the best pianist in the whole country! He’d be a madman not to choose you!” his excitement was making him speak louder than he usually did and she chuckled as some tears spilt from her eyes at the amount of confidence he had in her. She could hear her mother laugh as well from the kitchen and they both blushed as they realized they were probably being too loud in their excitement.

Suga stilled then, still hugging her tightly against his chest, his cheek pressed against the top of her head as she breathed in his familiar scent.

“I’m really proud of you, there’s no one else who deserves this more than you” he whispered softly and she tightened her hold on him, smiling against his shirt.

“Thank you” she said softly, muffled by his clothes and they parted slightly, arms still around each other as she looked up at him with a smile. He reached up with a hand to softly wipe the tears that had spilled from her eyes away. She was -not for the first time- mesmerized by the rich brown of his eyes and the way his beauty mark enhanced every aspect of his face.

“So this means you’ll get to play two songs?” he asked and she nodded, feeling her cheeks heat up with a blush at the proximity. She could swear she saw him blush as well and he cleared his throat as they both parted from the hug.

“The one I showed you will stay as my solo” she explained and he nodded as they made their way to the piano again, sitting side by side on the bench. She grinned at him as she started playing a few keys. “You’ll never guess what the main piece for the orchestra number will be”

“Is it something you’ve played for me before?” he asked and she nodded her head. She knew that didn’t narrow the list down at all. She smirked and she could see him wracking his brain for what song it could be. She started playing the first notes and his face lit up, his mouth dropping open in astonishment.

“No way!” he said and she simply nodded as she continued playing. “I can’t believe they’re choosing that one, it doesn’t seem like the conventional type of song they usually play at recitals every year”

“Apparently they let the members of the orchestra choose this year and since most are young, they decided to play a song that struck a chord” she smiled as she continued softly playing the song for background “seems like a lot of them are Game of Thrones fans”

“Who would’ve thought” Suga chuckled next to her.

They were both fans of the show and the books, having read them together during one summer and then watched the show once they finished the books. One of the main things they had enjoyed a lot together was the music; her for obvious reasons and him just because he genuinely enjoyed listening to her talk about what made her passionate, he also enjoyed the afternoons where she’d just play for him – the fact that he loved looking at her so entranced while her skillful fingers grazed his ears with the sounds of her favorite songs and how she looked almost ethereal was also a big part of it-.

“It’s not the most intricate piece I’ve ever played, but it’s definitely one of my favorite orchestral pieces” she said with a soft smile on her face as she played the last keys, “my solo will definitely be much more complicated but thankfully I already mastered it” she sighed as she softly closed the piano top, stretching her arms up and missing the way Suga’s eyes looked at the way she moved. He quickly looked away, hoping she wouldn’t notice how red his face had become, “I’m more worried about being able to mold into the whole ensemble”

“You’ll do great” he said earnestly and she nudged him with a grin on her face, “and if you need any tips about team work you know you can always come to me”

“I know, who else could I possibly ask other than the famous Volleyball team Vice Captain?” she teased and he smirked at her.

“Are you staying for dinner Koushi-kun?” her mother asked, popping her head in through the door to the kitchen and he sighed as he shook his head.

“I should actually get going, but next time I definitely will” he smiled, bowing shortly in thanks as her mother dismissively shook her hand at his politeness.

“Say hello to your mother for me, I’ll pay her a visit this weekend” she smiled, making her way back to the kitchen and leaving the teenagers alone in the silence of the living room as he shouldered his bag once again.

“So how was the practice match? Who was it that you played against this time?” she asked as she walked him back to the entrance of the house, crouching down as he sat down to put his shoes back on.

“Just the neighborhood association, Coach Ukai got them to play a few matches with us and since their setter and other players weren’t available I got to set for them, Ennoshita and Kinoshita also played with us” he said as he stood back up and looked at her.

“That’s good! It’s always nice to practice with new people, you get to practice your skills” she said as they walked out of the house and he hummed in agreeance.

“Yeah, we won 2 out of 3 sets” he said, as they both stood outside. Their conversation about his feelings towards Kageyama taking up his place was still hanging there in the air and she knew he still didn’t feel fully comfortable with it. He had to sub in for the first year during the match against Aoba Johsai and had been able to play for a long while. She had been so proud watching him lift the team’s spirits up and helping them win the set. It was all the more crushing to watch them lose after that.

“That’s good, I can’t wait to watch you play on the Spring Inter High Qualifiers” she beamed at him and he looked away towards the road.

“I really hope we get to Nationals just this one time” he said wishfully and she walked closer to him, taking a hold of his hand and squeezing it tightly.

“You will, I know you will and I’ll be there cheering for all of you along the way” she smiled the brightest smile and it ignited a fire in him that spurred on his conviction that they had to make it happen no matter what. Karasuno was going to Nationals this year.

“And I’ll be there first row on that recital…respectfully cheering for you” he chuckled and she laughed at him. She knew how much he contained himself not to full on cheer like he was in a match when he went to see her play and it was all the more endearing when she turned around to bow to the crowd to watch his beaming face looking at her and applauding.

“Wouldn’t want you to get kicked out of the venue like that time they had to almost drag Nishinoya and Tanaka out for being too loud” she laughed as she remembered the time Suga, Daichi, Asahi, Tanaka and Noya had surprised her by showing up at one of her recitals to support her. The underclassmen could barely contain their boisterous personalities in the graceful and elegant environment and the five of them had almost been kicked out until Suga and Daichi had finally managed to harness the overly excited boys.

“Yeah maybe this time it will only be me” he said sheepishly and she only then realized that she was still holding his hand. She let go and immediately missed the warmth as he started walking away from her gate.

“See you tomorrow in class” she waved a hand and he waved back, saying a quick goodnight as he walked the short block to his house. She walked back inside, her hand still feeling that tingling sensation she got from holding his as she walked to the kitchen where her mother was waiting for her to have dinner. “Is dad not coming home for dinner tonight?” she asked, already knowing the answer. Her father was the head of Pediatrics at the biggest hospital in their town, so he was busy most of the time.

“No sweety, but I told him about the recital, he’s very excited for you” her mother smiled as she placed a plate in front of her, “he told me that he’ll arrange matters so that he has that day completely free so he can come watch you play”

“That would be nice” she said with a half-hearted smile. She knew her father didn’t mean wrong, but it still stung whenever he wasn’t there to watch her play. He was a busy man though, and he was saving lives, so she couldn’t completely blame him. He’d always watch the recording though, and he’d always praise her the next morning, leaving her a small bouquet of flowers before he had to go back to work.

This was her last recital before going to University to pursue music as her career though, so she hoped he’d truly come at least this one last time.


	3. Roses

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Roses - Jean-Michael Blais

Weeks passed with much of the same routines for both of them. Summer had come to an end, Karasuno having passed the preliminaries, they were now training intensely for the Qualifiers for the Spring Inter High. She, on the other hand, was drowning in rehearsals. September was flying by faster than she liked and soon enough the Recital was also going to be just around the corner.

What little time they had free, though, they’d spend together either studying or just hanging out resting from the day’s activities.

It was one of those Sunday afternoons that found both of them laying down on the floor of her living room, textbooks long forgotten on the table, enjoying the nice breeze coming in from the open doors to the garden.

Suga looked at her from his spot, she had her eyes closed and her lips were slightly quirked up. His heart jumped as he looked at her, so peaceful for the first time in a while and he held his breath in fear of disrupting the quiet ambiance. They were close to one another, so close that if he reached his hand just a little bit, he’d be able to brush the strand of hair that had fallen across her face…

“Do you know what you want to do? Once we’re done, I mean” she whispered quietly and Suga let out a long sigh, his hand twitching slightly where it had stopped just an inch away from her face – he hadn’t even realized he had moved it and he quickly pulled it back to lay on his side-. She opened her eyes then, rolling on her side to look at him in the eyes and it was like all the breath had been punched out of his lungs, “I know you mentioned a couple of things that you’d like to do but you never confirmed anything”

He stayed silent for a while, he had thought about it a lot lately and there was only one option that hadn’t left his mind. “I’d like to become a teacher” he confessed and she smiled brightly at him, he swore his heart melted right then. “I’ve been thinking about it for a while and…I don’t know, it just makes sense to me, you know?”

Her smile only widened and she nodded, reaching over and resting her hand on top of his. He hoped that she couldn’t hear his heart hammering in his chest. “You’d be a wonderful teacher, I’ve seen how you handle the team, you have more patience than I ever would with all of them” she chuckled, “I honestly don’t know how you survive with Tanaka and Nishinoya, and now Hinata and Kageyama as well, the team is truly becoming a hurricane” he laughed, a fond smile grazing his lips.

“They have a lot of potential and talent” he said thoughtfully, in a brief moment of bravery he had turned his hand to properly hold hers on top of his chest and now his thumb was drawing soft circles on the back of her hand, “it’s just a matter of knowing how to work with their strengths and amplify them”

She smirked at him, “you make it sound so easy”, she returned the soft caresses to the back of his hand, now drawing small eights in the back of it, “but then again, I suppose it’s natural for you, which is why I’m even more sure that you’d be an amazing teacher, have you thought about where you’d like to go? I mean Universities and stuff”

He sighed then. He knew that both of their paths were very different there. She was destined to go to Tokyo, or even abroad, to make it big in the music industry as a pianist and composer. His ambitions were slightly more local though, he wanted to go to a University not that far from home and maybe even work at Karasuno one day.

“I’ve checked out a few universities, I’m interested in a few programs but it will all depend on my scores on the entrance exams” he said looking down at their intertwined hands. He wondered if he should say something then, their time together as carefree high school students was slowly coming to an end. Did he really want them both to go on their own ways without telling her how he truly felt?

“I think I’m going to apply for the Tokyo College of Music” she said and she looked at him in the eyes. He saw something in the way she looked at him that he couldn’t quite place, but it made his heart clench. “It has one of the best programs for aspiring musicians and a lot of their students become world class artists”

“That’s where you should go, then, you belong with stars” he said and she smiled, he didn’t miss the way her cheeks blushed deeply and he almost succumbed to the urge to just bring her forward into his chest and pepper her with kisses.

“Sakamoto-sensei told me there’s going to be representatives from the admission’s department at the recital, he has a few friends there so he convinced them to come just this one time” her voice almost cracked and he could tell that despite the confidence she always felt when it came to her skills, she was nervous. He etched himself closer to her and she looked up at him, the blush not leaving her cheeks.

“Then you give them a show they’ll never forget” he whispered. They were even closer now, their hands still laced together between them as he laid on his side in front of her. His free hand brushed a strand of her hair away from her face and he swallowed around the knot in his throat at the fact that he just had to barely lean down and he could kiss her.

“I’m going to the shop for a little bit, do you kids want me to bring something special?” her mother’s voice called from the hallway to the entrance of the house, the spell they had encased themselves in broke and they both jumped away from each other, equally crimson blushes on both of their faces.

She cleared her throat, sitting up from the floor as he sat back down against the sofa and leaned his head up to look at the ceiling, the wall, just anywhere but her. “No, mom, thanks”

“Are you staying over for dinner tonight, Koushi-kun?” her mom’s face popped in through the door and he rubbed the back of his neck, “I was thinking of making some Mapo tofu, just the way you like it”

“Oh I wouldn’t want to disturb” he started and her mother shook her head in that no nonsense way that could always stop anyone from arguing with her.

“You wouldn’t be, come on, stay, you kids have been working so hard lately, let me spoil you a little bit” she winked and he chuckled at the embarrassed groan that came from the girl next to him.

“Alright, I could never say no to your Mapo tofu anyway” he said and her mother smiled before walking out of the house and leaving them alone once again. The air was thick with a tension that neither of them addressed and so they simply stared at their textbooks for a while.

“I-”

“The dates for-”

They stared at each other and burst out laughing, the tension suddenly disappearing as they both chuckled at having interrupted each other.

“You were saying?” he asked as their giggles quieted down.

“They had to change the date for the recital, turns out there was a mishap with the venue and they had to reschedule the day” she explained and he nodded in understanding, “it will be October 26th”

He looked at her as he felt his heart drop.

“That’s the same day as the semi-finals” he said and her smile turned into a deep frown.

“What?! I thought the last match would be played the 25th” she grabbed her planner and started frantically going through the pages until she reached October, a bunch of scribbled notes and red circles over dates and she groaned as she realized that what she had marked was the start and not the end of qualifiers. “God I’m so dumb, but this means you won’t be able to come to the recital and I won’t be there for the match” she dropped her head down on the table with a loud thump and he leaned back again.

“Well shit” he said, he had so been looking forward to see her in the recital, and even more so to have her there on the matches cheering for him -for the team-, he cursed at whatever deity had played them like this.

“You better win that match, Sugawara Koushi, I will be there to watch you on that final match” she said as she looked up with a threatening look and he almost laughed at the sheer force and willpower her eyes held. Almost like she’d go there and play in her dress right out of playing the piano just to ensure they won. He’d give good money to watch that happen.

“We’ll win, just for you” he winked and she blushed deeply, all her strength and mean looks washed away to have her pouting at him for teasing her.

“My mom always records my performances anyway, for my dad” she explained and he could hear the slight ache in her words as she said it, “so you can still watch me afterwards”

“I’ll ask her to make me a copy” he said and she beamed slightly at him. She leaned against the couch next to him, their shoulders touching as she leaned her head against his shoulder.

“I’m already your personal pianist anyway, don’t know how you haven’t gotten sick of it by now” she said and he nudged her gently, making her giggle.

“Don’t ever say that, I could never get sick of listening to you play, it’s one of my favorite things ever” he said softly.

“More than getting Daichi riled up or Asahi embarrassed about something?” she chuckled and he smiled against her hair, leaning his cheek down on her head.

“Thousand times more than that” he said quietly.

She didn’t know it yet, but she was his favorite everything.


	4. Début

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Début - Mélanie Laurent

October 25th came and with it, she was a mess of nerves for multiple reasons. The recital was the next day and she had been tirelessly rehearsing both her solo piece -she had it down to perfection by now, even Sakamoto-sensei had told her so- and the orchestral piece that had come together much better than she ever could’ve expected.

So as she paced around the hallways of the school, the recital was not what was going through her mind, but volleyball.

Karasuno was playing two matches that day and considering there weren’t enough people interested in going to cheer for the team, the vice-principal had concluded that no one would go. She and Michimiya Yui -former captain of the girls’ volleyball team- had been beyond pissed when he had announced it to them when they went to ask for permission, but there was no way to melt his resolve and so she found herself stalking off from his office, leaving the other girl behind in a confused flurry.

Since Suga hadn’t taken his phone with him, she had received a text message from Shimizu earlier letting her know that they had won the first match and were now just waiting for the second one to start.

She walked aimlessly for a while until she found herself in the music room. Considering College Entrance exams were growing near, the third years who were enrolled in college prep classes -as were she and Suga- didn’t have much workload, most of their time in school was devoted to studying and prepping for the exams and so they only had a few mandatory hours of class, the rest of the time they were expected to dedicate to studying. So study she did, as she walked into the empty music classroom and headed directly towards the only thing that could keep her from melting down into a puddle of anxiety.

Sitting down on the bench, she opened the lid of the piano and didn’t waste any time starting to play one of her favorite songs. The quick tempo matched her anxious heart beat by beat and her lithe fingers gracefully travelled to and from the keys, entrapping her in a melody that helped her let go of all her nerves.

Time flew by like that, her going through her repertoire of songs as she could slowly feel the tension ooze out of her like steam as she waited for them to come back, for someone to come with news. As she played the last key of the song she was playing, she heard footsteps running through the hall and just as she turned around, Yui’s flushed face came into view as she burst through the door, heaving “they’re back” and they both scrambled out of the building as they ran towards the courtyard.

As they came into view of the rented bus the team had left in, she spotted a familiar mop of grey hair and her heart hammered in her chest as Asahi pointed towards her with a smile and Suga turned around to look at her.

“So?!” she demanded as she finally reached the group of boys coming down from the bus and he chuckled at her eagerness. She noticed how all of them had smiles on their faces and her heart just sped up-

“We won, we passed to the semi-finals” he said with a proud smile and he could barely braze himself before she was tackling him in a hug.

“Oh, I didn’t know Sugawara-san had a girlfriend” a confused voice asked from behind them and both Suga and her let each other go with deep blushes to turn to the young blonde girl looking at them with a confused face.

“I- we’re not” they both tried to explain but could only manage to further blush.

“They’re just childhood friends, Yachi” Shimizu quietly explained, throwing them both a knowing grin.

“We haven’t been properly introduced yet, Yachi-san, but Suga’s told me a lot about you” she said, recovering from the embarrassment and bowing politely as the girl blushed a deep shade of red, “I’m (L/N) (Y/N), it’s a pleasure to meet you”

“The- I- pleased to meet you too!” Yachi enthusiastically bowed down, looking extremely flustered and (Y/N) chuckled at the sight.

“Alright, you’ll all have time to catch up later, we have a post-game meeting now” Coach Ukai piped up from where he was, walking further ahead from the group and already making his way to the gym.

“Sorry to stall your players, coach, congratulations on making it to the semi-finals!” (Y/N) and Yui waved as the boys all shouldered their bags and started following the coach.

Suga turned one last time, “Walk home with me later?”

“I have rehearsals at the venue after class, but I’ll drop by your house later tonight, I have something I want to give you” she smiled and he nodded, the slight disappointment he felt at not being able to walk her home subdued by the prospect of seeing her later. He wondered what she wanted to give him but he shook his head, turning around and following his team.

“So are you finally going to confess to him tonight?” Yui teased and (Y/N) looked at the girl with a raised eyebrow.

“Will you finally confess your feelings for Daichi?” she teased back, effectively shutting Yui up and making her blush. She snorted a laugh as she nudged Yui with her shoulder, starting to walk back to the main building, “come on, it’s almost time to go home anyway”

* * *

“I’m going to Suga’s house for a little bit mom!” she announced as she put on her shoes.

“Alright, just don’t take too long, dinner is almost ready” her mom said and she threw an acknowledging grunt back before walking out of the house and down the couple of houses that separated their houses.

The lights on his bedroom were on and she smiled as she walked up the steps towards the door. Her heart beat hard against her chest and she willed it to calm down as she clenched her hand tighter around the small package she held. She brought one hand up to ring the door bell and she laughed as she could hear him loudly making his way down the stairs and announced that he’d open the door.

He opened the door with flushed cheeks and his hair dripping water onto his shoulders, making his t-shirt wet.

“You know you could’ve finished your shower properly; I would’ve been fine with your mom opening the door for me” she laughed and he blushed harder. He shook his head a little, small droplets of water raining down from his disheveled hair and (Y/N) didn’t think he could possibly look better than he did right at that moment.

“Yeah well, I wanted to see you already” he admitted and it was her turn to blush a dark shade of red as she looked down at her feet, he cleared his throat and shyly rubbed the back of his neck, “I’ve been so curious about what you wanted to give me” he said and she internally smacked herself in the head, of course, he was just talking about that.

“Right,” she started, clutching the package in her hand, “well, since I won’t be able to be there tomorrow at the game…I made you this” she handed him the package and he looked down at her hands with a surprised look on his face. He gently grabbed the small red package and opened it to reveal the black woven anklet inside. Holding it up in his hand, he could see that in white letters, she had embroidered the word “ _Fly_ ”.

Suga looked up at her and had to stop himself from telling her right then and there that he loved her. She was looking at him with an expectant smile and he looked down at the anklet once more.

“It’s for good luck, I wanted to make something that you could wear and wouldn’t disturb you so I thought the anklet would be a good idea”

“It’s perfect” he finally managed to blurt out and she sighed in relief, “I- I don’t know what to say”

“Just promise me you’ll win tomorrow and I’ll take that as a thanks” she winked and on a whim, he raced the whole way up the stairs, leaving her in the entrance of the house gaping at the empty space he had left in front of her.

He rummaged through his room until he finally found the little box he had kept in his desk drawer, racing back down the stairs.

“If you didn’t like it all you had to do was say it” she laughed as he rolled his eyes half-heartedly, dissmissing her comment.

“I loved it, I was just looking for this” he explained, holding the box up for her to take, “I was going to give it to you as a graduation gift, but I think I want you to have it tomorrow, as a little piece of me to make up for not being able to be there”

“Suga, you didn’t have to” she said, running her fingers through the little box.

“Come on, open it” he nudged and she complied. Her breath hitched in her throat when she saw the delicate golden necklace, it had a piano shaped pendant with her initials engraved on the back. She could feel the tears pricking in her eyes and she swallowed around a knot in her throat as she looked up at him.

“Suga, what? I-” she stuttered and he chuckled at her attempts at speaking, “how did you afford something like this? I’m feeling very inadequate about that stingy little anklet now”

He heartily laughed then and she scowled at him as he recovered his breath, “don’t be silly, I had been saving up and wanted to give you something nice when we both graduated” he said, looking at her in the eyes “you know, something to remember my by when you’re making it big in Tokyo as Japan’s finest pianist”

She sighed then, the tears in her eyes were seriously threatening to fall now and she closed her eyes as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders, pulling him down into a tight hug. “I could never forget about you, Koushi”

Listening to his name come out of her mouth made chills run down his back and he hugged her back even tighter, breathing in her sweet perfume.

They pulled away after a few minutes and she looked down to the necklace once again.

“Thank you, this is beautiful” she smiled at him and she couldn’t help the tear that escaped her then. He softly brought up a hand to brush it away, his hand lingering in her cheek as they looked at each other. “I should probably go back home; mom will kill me if I don’t go back before dinner gets cold” she chuckled and he nodded. “good luck tomorrow” she whispered as she walked down the steps from his door.

“You too, break a leg” he winked and she could swear her heart fluttered. Before she could stop herself, she ran back up the couple of steps only to deposit a brief kiss on his cheek, barely a graze of her lips on his skin, but enough to make his heart feel like it was about to explode in his ribcage.

“Goodnight, Kou” she whispered as she walked back down the steps without taking another look back.

He stood there for a couple more seconds, his hand holding the cheek that she had just kissed, his ears ringing from the nickname she had just called him and looking at the spot where he had last seen her.

He reached a final decision then.

Finals. Once they won finals, he’d tell her how he truly felt.


	5. La Clairière

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> La Clairière - Piano Novel

Her hand clutched the pendant that rested a little under her collarbones, fingers unconsciously tracing the dents and molds of the small piano as her heart thumped loudly in her chest. She could feel her stomach doing backflips that could probably compete in the Olympics inside her and she closed her eyes, breathing slowly in and out.

The sounds of people arriving at the venue, amicably chatting amongst themselves from the other side of the thick velvet curtains arrived to her ears like a loud, ringing noise.

It was always like this before a performance. No matter how much she had practiced or how confident she felt about herself, it was the few minutes before walking up on the stage that were the most dreadful.

She swiped at the drop of sweat that threatened to fall from her forehead and ruin the intricate braids that her mother had helped her arrange her hair in so that it wouldn’t fall on her face.

“Did I ever tell you about the time I almost threw up in the middle of the stage on my first official performance?” the soothing voice of her mentor came from behind her. She turned around to see him smiling fondly at her and the sight of him there already served to slightly calm her nerves. She shook her head and he looked down with a slight chuckle to his tone, “I was so nervous I almost tripped as I walked towards the big piano in the center of the stage, luckily enough I was still young and my reflexes were sharp… my stomach though, I hadn’t been able to eat anything that day and I think that’s the only reason I managed to control myself from throwing up in front of everyone before finally sitting down on that bench” he looked away towards the place where the big Steinway & sons piano was placed in the middle of the stage. It would be moved between performances, but hers was the opening one, so right now it stood there proudly under a bright beam of light. “Once I sat down on it and started to play, everything else faded”

“Considering my mother forced me to have breakfast today before coming, I might not be as lucky as you were” she nervously laughed and he walked up to her, putting a hand on her shoulder. She sighed, closing her eyes and willing the bile that she felt rising up her throat to go down. “I know what you mean, though, I feel just like that when I play”

“Have you taken a look at the audience tonight?” he asked and she shook her head, she hadn’t had the heart to look at the big theatre, scared that once she saw how many people were there, her knees would fail her and she’d just not be able to stand back up. He motioned for her to go do it and she hesitated before slightly moving the heavy curtain to poke her head through, looking at the audience gathering.

This was by far the biggest stage she had performed at, being one of the main theatres in Miyagi and she gulped thickly as she watched row after row of seats filled with people. Then, right in the middle row and a little bit towards the left, she spotted them.

Her heart thumped when she saw her father right next to her mother as they talked while looking at the program for the recital.

“He actually came” she whispered and she could feel Sakamoto-sensei leaning in behind her, taking a peek at the audience. Despite her mother -and even her father- promising he’d make it today, she had had her doubts. It wouldn’t have been the first time he’d been called last minute for an emergency at the hospital, the seat next to her mother left empty.

“I wouldn’t have missed my daughter’s last performance before going to college if I were him either” Sakamoto-sensei said, putting a reassuring hand on her shoulder as the lights over the audience dimmed, signaling it was almost time for the event to start. “You should go take your place now, I’ll be announcing the performances in a few minutes”

She nodded and before he turned to leave, she bowed down to him, “thank you, Sakamoto-sensei, for everything”

He smiled lightly and gave a short bow of his own head, his light grey hair falling down to his black rimmed glasses. “It’s been a pleasure being your mentor so far, now give them a show they won’t forget”

She smiled, clutching the pendant once more as he walked away and thinking about Suga. If only he was here, she’d only have to look at him in the audience and it would help calm her nerves. That familiar warm feeling that always came with his presence surrounding her like a comforting blanket. She wondered how the match was going and it only served to make her nerves spike back up.

She shook her head to get rid of those thoughts. It wouldn’t help to have her thoughts elsewhere.

“Ladies and gentlemen, welcome, to this year’s Final Recital for Morioka Musical Academy” Sakamoto-sensei’s deep voice spoke through the speakers, calling for the attention of everyone as he stood in the middle of the stage with a microphone in hand, standing proud and tall. Like he owned the stage. He continued his speech, she drowned out most of it in favor of taking deep, calming breaths as she stood on the side of the stage while the manager motioned for everyone to stand on place.

“You’re first up, when he calls your name you know what to do” she called as she stood next to (Y/N) and she simply nodded. One last breath and her mentor was calling her name while asking for applause from the audience. She knew they were doing it, giving her a warm welcome to the illuminated center. All she could hear was the soft pats of her feet as she took one step after the other towards the piano. Other noises molded into the background.

She stood in front of the bench, her fingers tingling slightly as she turned around towards the audience to give one bow towards them. Straightening herself up, she smiled slightly as she found her parents in the audience. Despite the darkness that covered them, and the bright light that threatened to bling her in the stage, she could tell that they were smiling proudly at her and her mother holding the camera up as she pointed it towards her.

Her hands were slightly damp and she discreetly dried them on the soft fabric of her black dress.

Finally, she sat on the bench _. This is it_ , she thought as her fingers hovered over the keys, her feet resting softly on the pedals. Her heart thumped loudly in her chest and it drowned out all other sounds as she breathed in once before finally pressing the first keys.

It was like a spark ignited. The first notes were soft, slow enough to set the ambiance and she felt all remains of nervousness and anxiety dissipate into the air as the melody surrounded her.

A brief break between notes. Merely a second. She picked up, the tempo going up as her hands flew back and forwards through the keys. The music and her took each other by the hand and flew as the notes filled the air, leaving nothing around her but the fire that ignited from her fingers as they pressed on the keys. She swayed along to the song, letting herself be carried away by it and before she knew it, it was over.

She almost jumped when she heard the applauses coming from the audience, having almost forgotten that she was not, in fact, alone there but in front of hundredths of people.

She stood up from the bench, her knees feeling slightly wobbly as Sakamoto-sensei walked back on stage. A proud smile grazed his lips as he caught her eye and he extended a hand towards her for her to bow down at the audience one last time before exiting the stage, already welcoming the next performance into the stage.

One of the stage assistants quickly ran over to her with a towel and a bottle of fresh water and she thanked the boy before taking a seat on one of the chairs aligned backstage.

Other students of the academy where walking to and from, nervously shifting but she closed her eyes, drowning them all out. She sympathized with them, but now that her solo performance was over, she could feel her lungs relaxing from the oppressive pression she had felt before. Her stomach had finally stopped doing backflips.

Only one performance left.

* * *

The second set was in full swing now and Karasuno was struggling to understand Kyoutani’s tactic. They came to the conclusion that he was a double-edged sword. His impulsive behavior serving to confuse and keep on edge both the opponents as well as his own teammates.

They had managed to win the first set 25-23 thanks to the aggressive boy’s spike, having pushed his other teammate in favor of trying to score himself and managing to spike it outside of the court lines.

Suga looked at his teammates, his legs trembling slightly with the need to step on the court. He could feel the anklet under his sock where he had put it to keep it from flying out while he ran and just the feeling of it against his skin served to somewhat calm his nerves.

The second set started now and the new guy was on the starting alignment. Suga breathed out, trying to get rid of his anxiousness as he formed a plan in his mind about how to counter attack this new formation.

Aoba Johsai managed to score 3 points in a row with Kyoutani’s powerful spikes and the difference in the marker grew slightly.

“Sugawara-san” Coach Ukai’s voice shook him out of his reverie as he motioned for him to come towards them. “We’re not going to let them get ahead, we’ll do anything it takes”

Suga was down next to the coach, that feeling in the pit of his stomach rising up into a fire as his knee bounced up in excitement. He gripped the number in his hand as he waited for his moment to come on the court.

Finally, after a blocked spike from Tanaka ended up as a point, the referee blew his whistle and it was Suga’s time to stand up and go on the court.

Tsukishima towered over him as they switched the number card, Sugawara making his official entrance to the match.

He walked over to Kageyama, whispering his new tactic into his teammate’s ear before the referee blew on the whistle again, signaling for the set to continue.

Taking a deep breath in, Sugawara prepared for his first serve, throwing the ball up and just as quickly hitting it with his hand, making it fly to his target.

He pointed directly at number 16, effectively ending his strike of spikes.

After his second serve, Sugawara and Kageyama switched positions, allowing Kageyama to move to offense and join a synchronized attack. Sugawara set to Kageyama and the first year was able to successfully land a straight shot.

The score was now 16-17 with Aoba Johsai still on the lead as the referee called for a Time-out.

However, it wasn’t an infallible tactic and Aoba Johsai quickly adapted and figured out a way to keep Kyoutani from making the first receive. As number 16 spiked another point, Tsukishima was back on the side with Suga’s number in his hand and Suga jogged up to make the switch, walking back to where the rest of the team was.

It seemed like this wasn’t going to be such an easy set to win either.

And it wasn’t, ending with a win for Aoba Johsai despite Yamaguchi’s serves being able to help them decrease the scoreboard by a lot.

The third set was looming on top of all of them and as they gulped on their water and listened to Coach Ukai’s indications for the last set, Suga crouched down and wrapped his fingers around his ankle.

He had made a promise. He knew that it wasn’t all up to him, but he’d be damned if they didn’t fight their way no matter what and made it to the Final.


	6. Light of the seven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Light of the seven - Ramin Djawadi

Violins, cellos, flutes, trumpets and drums were now being arranged quickly as there was a brief hiatus before the last performance. The piano was moved to the side of the stage in order to accommodate the kapellmeister’s podium.

(Y/N)’s hands trembled slightly as she watched the stage manager and assistants fly about making quick work of organizing everything. They’d be walking up to the stage in a matter of minutes for the final performance of the evening.

She was nervous once again. This was her first big performance with an orchestra, and despite the numerous times they had rehearsed and how well they had sounded in the final soundcheck, she couldn’t help the nervous shift in her stance.

She wondered if Higurashi-san ever felt like this.

“It’s time to go up and take your places” a soft voice called from behind her and she nodded, looking back at the girl who had spoken to her to see the girl beaming encouragingly at her. She sighed a deep breath before slowly making her way to the piano.

The rest of the orchestra slowly filed in, making their way to their instruments and assuming their respective positions.

The murmurs from behind the curtains quieted down as they drew back, allowing the full orchestra to come into view of the audience. The kapellmeister made his entrance, standing proudly on his stage in his black tailored suit. He bowed down, the rest of the orchestra mimicking it in the varying degrees that their instruments allowed them before he turned around and resumed his position, grabbing his baton and doing a quick once over to the whole ensemble.

His eyes stopped in (Y/N) and her fingers rested on the first keys, waiting for his indication to start.

With a slight tilt of his head, he started conducting and (Y/N)’s fingers once again started glazing over the keys in a familiar way, enveloping the entire theatre with the melancholic melody.

The introduction over, the violins and cellos made their entrance, slowly increasing their intensity and molding perfectly into a symphony that (Y/N) could drown in.

They quieted down, (Y/N)’s fingers following the same pattern for the introduction and swaying back and forth to the sound of the notes.

Minutes turned into an infinity as she reached a soft peak in the beat of the song, losing herself in it.

Silence.

With her next key, the choir and the violins joined her. Voices that filled every body in the audience with the feeling of a slight crescendo that threatened to come but not quite yet.

And then the cellos joined, replacing (Y/N)’s piano as the organs made their entrance. She rested her hands on her lap, her eyes never leaving the kapellmeister’s hands as the rest of the orchestra built up the tempo with more instruments flooding in.

And then she joined for her final part in the song, adding that familiar tune to the background of the song and molding with the organ to initiate the final peak. She finalized with a last soft note, leaving the ending to the rest of the ensemble as they all came up to a final crescendo that filled the theatre with an accelerating energy.

It all came to an end abruptly as the kapellmeister made a final move of his hand, effectively bringing silence to the violins.

And then it was done. The entire audience standing up and showering with endless applause. (Y/N) breathed out a long sigh as her hand unconsciously went up to her pendant and squeezed it once before standing up to bow down to the audience along with the rest of the orchestra.

She spotted her parents on their seats; her mother was in tears and she noticed how it was her father who now held the camera. She smiled at them as the curtains closed once again.

She walked out along with the rest of them, making her way to the mirror that had been assigned to her to gulp down the last of the water bottle the stage assistant had handed her.

She grabbed a few paper towels, patting down the sweat that had collected in her forehead and brows from the heat of the lights beaming down at her.

“As marvelous as I knew you would be” Sakamoto-sensei beamed at her from his spot at the door, he had said the final words as ceremony master and had come to congratulate his pupil.

“Thank you, although I believe most of it was thanks to your instructions” she said with a slight blush on her cheeks, he shook his head.

“Nonsense, I only helped sharpen what was already there” he smiled and then beckoned her to come with him, “I know your parents must be waiting for you, but I have some people who’d like to meet you”

She gave him a confused look, but the spark in the old man’s eyes gave away what this must be about. She followed him silently, her thoughts and heart racing as her hand once again found its way to the pendant hanging from her neck.

“Ah, Sakamoto-san, your students are as bright as I supposed they would be” a man in a grey suit bowed as he and his group noticed them approaching, “so this is the star pupil that you’ve been talking about so much” he smiled and (Y/N) hoped that her blush wasn’t as dark as she felt it was.

“Kizami-san, this is (L/N) (Y/N)” Sakamoto-sensei introduced and they both bowed, “(L/N)-san, Kizami-san is from the head of admission’s department at the Tokyo College of Music”

“I’ve been eager to hear you play, (L/N)-san, your mentor speaks highly of you” the man said as he studied her, “and now I can see that he wasn’t lying”

“I- well- thank you very much” she stuttered and bowed down once more.

“You’re interested in applying to one of our programs next year?” he asked and she nodded enthusiastically. “Well, we’ll be looking forward to seeing you when the next term comes, we’re always happy to welcome such talented and promising students”

“Thank you very much, it’s such a pleasure to meet you!” she spluttered out and bowed once more, the men in front of her lightly chuckled.

“I suppose you should go meet your family now, they must be waiting to congratulate you” Sakamoto-sensei said and she nodded, looking around and finally spotting her parents among the crowd. They were both looking at her with curious looks on their faces and she smiled encouragingly.

“I’ll see you on Monday, Sakamoto-sensei, thank you very much for everything” she bowed slightly for the final time before addressing the other man, “and it was a pleasure to meet you, Kizami-san”

“I’ll see you in Tokyo, (L/N)-san” he nodded and she finally turned around to walk towards her parents.

She had to control herself not to fully jump in the air in a loud cheer in front of everyone as she walked faster until she reached her parents.

“You were amazing, dear” her mother said as she wrapped her arms around her, her father stayed behind her and he smiled brightly once she finally turned to him. She could tell that his eyes were slightly red, the telltale signs of tears clear on his face as he wrapped his arms around his daughter’s shoulders, leaving a brief kiss to the top of her head.

“I’m so incredibly proud of you” he whispered and she couldn’t help the tear that escaped her eyes as she hid her face on her father’s chest, a knot in her throat preventing her from speaking.

“Who was that man you were just talking to with Sakamoto-sensei?” her mother asked as they finally ended the hug and started making their way to the car.

“That was Kizami-san, he’s the head of the admissions department at Tokyo College for Music” she explained and chuckled slightly at her parent’s flabbergasted expressions. She continued to explain the conversation and was thankful that they had finally reached the car because her father straight up whooped with a fist in the air once she told them everything.

As they made their way out of the parking-lot, she checked her phone only to see that she had no new messages. She knew that Shimizu probably had no time to let her know about the match, and it only served to feed her nerves as her thoughts drifted from the recital to the volleyball match. It had to be over by now, right?

* * *

At the same time as the final notes of the orchestra’s performance sounded, Karasuno was finally able to break through Aoba Johsai’s defenses with one last quick combination from Kageyama and Hinata. The world seemed to come to a screeching halt as the ball hit the floor inside the court and the referee’s whistle signaled the match had come to an end with Karasuno taking the final, wining point.

Cheers erupted from one side as the crows all flew to the court in screams of happiness.

They had made it.

They won.

And now they only had once more step to go before Nationals.

Suga stood along his teammates as they stepped up to bow in thanks to the crowd. Despite knowing she wasn’t there; he couldn’t help his eyes from roaming over the stands in hopes of catching a glimpse of a familiar smile.

Forty minutes later, they were on the bus and making their way to school for an after-match meeting. They weren’t done. They still had to get ready for tomorrow; to face Shiratorizawa. He felt his stomach churn and despite how tired they all were, he felt restless.

He hated the fact that he hadn’t brought his phone with him, he couldn’t even send her a text to know how the recital had gone or let her know that he had kept his promise. He supposed it was for the better, though, considering that now he could see her face when he told her. Yeah, it was better to wait.

* * *

Night had rolled in when he finally made his way back home. He was walking down the road alone and as he neared the door he spotted a familiar body sitting down on the steps in front of the door. She was looking down at the floor in front of her, her hands lightly grazing the necklace he had given her the night before and his heart thumped loudly in his chest.

She looked beautiful sitting there with her black dress and those braids that marked her face perfectly.

Finally, she looked up at him and all the breath was stolen from his lungs as she looked him in the eyes.

She stood up, taking a few steps towards him studying his expression for anything that gave away what had happened.

“So?!” she demanded, a reflection of her words the day before and he chuckled, she raised her eyebrows expectantly and he smiled brightly at her.

“We won” he said simply, his arms already open to receive her as she screamed in happiness before tackling him in a hug that ended up almost knocking both of them down. He wrapped his arms tightly back around her waist, bringing her closely to him as he breathed in her flowery perfume.

His resolve to wait until after the final match almost broke then.

“I knew you would!” she beamed at him and the way her eyes glinted with pride threatened to make his entire body melt with the warmth that enveloped him. “I’m so proud of you, Kou” there it was again, that endearing nickname that she had given him just yesterday and that made him feel all tingly inside, “ugh, I just wish I had been there to see it”

“I’m sure Hinata will be more than happy to give you a very enthusiastic play by play summary of the match” he chuckled, they gingerly let go of their embrace and he sat back down on the steps.

“I don’t think I’d be able to understand most of it, I still haven’t gotten my dictionary of ‘pooms’ and ‘pyons’” she chuckled and he let out a hearty laugh. She leaned her head against his shoulder and he felt the warmth from it radiate through his whole body. “I have something for you, you took so long to come back that my mom had it ready”

He looked down at the DVD she held in her hand, her soft handwriting labelling it ‘(Y/N)’s final recital at Morioka’. He took it gently, his fingers grazing hers slightly.

“I’ll watch it after dinner and give you a call, although I’m sure it’s just as amazing as all your performances” he smiled and she blushed. God, if he could kiss her right now, she was so close.

“Sakamoto-sensei introduced me to the head of admissions to Tokyo College of Music” she said, quietly, looking out at the sky as they both settled back with her head resting on his shoulder.

“And?” he prodded, heart skipping a beat.

“Well, he said he thinks I’m very talented and that he’ll be expecting my application” she said in an almost dismissive tone.

“What?! (Y/N) that’s amazing!” he said, wrapping his arm around her. He was slightly self-conscious of the fact that he hadn’t taken a shower yet, but she didn’t seem to mind as she burrowed closer to him.

“It’s not like I’m in already, I still have to go through the whole process” she said with a sigh, “I have to prepare a performance for the board of admissions, I don’t know what I could possibly play, there’ll be tons of other applicants”

“Why don’t you play one of your own compositions?” he suggested.

“None of them are anywhere near good enough to be performed in front of such an audience yet” she said and he squeezed her shoulder.

“Well, you have a lot of time, I think you have some really good ones that will definitely knock their wigs off” he lightly joked.

“Oh yeah, like Hinata and Kageyama did with the vice-principal?” she laughed with him and they both fell into a comfortable silence.

The temperature was dropping and despite how close together they were, he could tell she was getting cold from the slight shiver from her body. He quickly shrugged his jacket off, draping it across her shoulders, she quietly accepted it with a smile, furrowing in on it. God she looked adorable wearing his jacket and he had to will his heart not to jump out of his chest.

“You should go home, it’s getting cold” he said and she nodded.

“I’ll see you tomorrow at the game” she said and he smiled at her.

“See you tomorrow” he said as they waved goodbye, he entered his house before he could do something stupid like just right out kissing her right there and she walked away towards her house.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Sakamoto-sensei is a quick wink to a japanese composer I love, Sakamoto Ryuichi. I highly recommend giving him a listen if you hadn't already before.


	7. Winds of Winter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Winds of winter - Ramin Djawadi

There was something quite intoxicating about the air before a match.

(Y/N)’s entire body was slightly trembling with excitement as she made her way through the crowds of people along with Michimiya and her friends.

The school had finally organized a cheering squad for the volleyball team now that they had reached finals and a bunch of students had decided to come.

The four girls made their way apart from the crowd though, choosing to sit near the front where they could see everything better.

The shiny wooden floor of the court squeaked as people walked all over the place getting everything ready. Cameras flashed about and people with big headsets, TV crews and technical directors instructed assistants around.

(Y/N) could hear the vice-principal instructing the cheering squad and she grimaced at the lack of enthusiasm and rhythm her school mates had. It was extremely obvious that they were not used to transmitting morale. It was a stark contrast to Shiratorizawa’s much better organized and enthusiastic cheering squad -they did have _actual_ cheerleaders-. 

She looked down, searching for a familiar mop of grey hair and she spotted him warming up next to Ennoshita and Kinoshita. He looked up at her and smiled brightly and she beamed and gave him two thumbs up.

“Why is it that you two aren’t together again?” Aihara leaned against the banister with a smirk as she eyed her exchange with Suga. She blushed deeply.

“I-It’s not like that, we’re just friends” she tried denying but the way her voice stuttered and the flush in her cheeks gave her away.

“Mao-chan, stop teasing people with crushes” Chizuru chastised from next to her and (Y/N) could barely hide her blushing face.

The other team made its entrance then, saving her from any further humiliation as the four of them glanced down at them.

All dressed in their white and purple uniforms, they looked exactly like the powerful team that they were. Ushijima Wakatoshi was a tall and broad man, his presence screamed to be paid attention to and all eyes were on them as they stood in the middle of the court. They barely looked like the high school students that they were supposed to be.

They wasted no time trying to intimidate the competition as they started practicing spikes. Ushijima managed to send a ball to the stands with a loud and hard spike. (Y/N) shivered at the thought of what such power could do if a ball like that hit someone in the face.

She could hear Yui and the other girls talking behind her but she paid no mind as her hand went up to the pendant on her necklace. She had put it back on again if only because it was now a comforting thing to have on her. 

“You can do it, guys” she whispered softly as she looked down at the team.

The teams huddled together for words from their coaches and soon enough they were lining up on each side of the court while a feminine voice announced the beginning of the match through the loudspeakers.

(Y/N) could feel cold sweat collecting in the back of her neck as her heart rose up to her throat.

Daichi and Ushijima shook hands and both of them joined their teams on each side of the court for the official line-up presentation.

First came Karasuno, each of the boys proudly jogging up to Shimizu, Coach Ukai and Takeda-sensei before joining the rest on the court. She smirked as she watched Nishinoya enthusiastically jump up in the air before the coaches were introduced and then it was time for the other team.

She swallowed thickly as she watched Wakatoshi jog up to the court. The man was intimidating just standing there. But he was just one guy, she tried to remind herself of that, he was human.

Final words were spoken through the loudspeakers and then it was time for the initial blow of the whistle.

Daichi approached the edge of the court, bouncing the ball a couple of times as complete silence fell on the court before the first serve.

(Y/N) held her breath and she could feel Yui trembling next to her, she reached a hand to grab the short-haired girl’s hand and they both held on tightly as they watched the captain throw the ball up in the air, hitting the ball and making it go all the way to the next side of the net.

Number 8 from Shiratorizawa received it easily, sending it up to the setter, who lifted the ball up in the air for Ushijima to strike it down at full force. Despite the fact that Nishinoya was able to be there, the ball went flying up behind him after hitting his arms, effectively scoring the first point for Shiratorizawa.

“He’s lefthanded?” Yui asked, a surprised look on her face.

(Y/N) hummed in confirmation; her anxiety spiked all the way up to a 100.

This meant trouble.

* * *

The rest of the set flew by quickly. Nishinoya was slowly getting used to Ushijima’s left spikes and was getting slightly better at receiving.

The end score of the first set was 16-25 for Shiratorizawa.

The start of the second set was not much different, with the team having trouble stopping Ushijima’s powerful spikes despite Nishinoya’s best efforts along with the three-men block.

It wasn’t the only problem, though, Ushijima wasn’t the only asset of Shiratorizawa and (Y/N) and the girls quickly realized that the red-haired middle blocker was just as problematic with his extremely accurate guess blocks.

After a brief break, they watched as Tsukishima was able to set the timing for the block.

(Y/N) sighed a breath of relief as the final blow of the whistle signaled the end of the set.

31-29 for Karasuno.

The third set ended quickly with another win for Shiratorizawa and (Y/N)’s heart was hanging by a thread as she held on tightly to Yui’s hand.

The start of the fourth set brought with it a wave of anxiousness as she watched the team get hyped up to win another set.

“If Shiratorizawa wins this one…” Yui whispered next to her and (Y/N) tightened her grip on her hand.

“They won’t” (Y/N) said with a nod as she looked down, “trust them”

The ball flew from one side of the net to the other, each team doing their best to stop the incoming attacks from the other.

Hinata managed to surprise everyone with a quick left-hand attack and scored the final point to secure the set for Karasuno, effectively ending the set at 29-27.

The final set, of only 15 points was looming to start and (Y/N)’s eyes kept flying towards Suga, who stood among his teammates watching everything happen. She could tell he was thinking hard and could almost see the energy emanating from him as he ached to go on the court.

This was his moment, apparently, as him and Kageyama switched for the final set to let the first-year rest for a little bit.

(Y/N)’s heart thumped louder than the drums from Shiratorizawa as she watched him enter the game.

“GO SUGA!” she screamed before she could stop herself and she watched as she saw him look at her with a smirk and nod at her.

The red-haired middle blocker proved to be quite a problem as he continuously predicted Suga’s every move. The team was not deterred though, and in a mix of synchronized attacks, Sugawara surprised everyone by spiking the ball over the net and scoring.

(Y/N) was left speechless as she watched Suga scream in celebration along with his team and she burst out in a scream of joy as well, almost making Yui lose her balance as they both jumped up in excitement.

The match came to a full stop as Tsukishima, after trying to block Ushijima’s spike, got his hand injured. Silence fell on the court as they all watched the boy cradle his bleeding hand with the other and walk away from the court towards the infirmary.

Despite falling behind with Tsukishima’s absence, the team was more resolved than ever to win the match. Hinata was switched back into the game, accidentally receiving a ball with his face and allowing Sugawara to set and him to spike and score a point.

As the rest of the match continued, they reached match point but quickly reached a deuce as Shiratorizawa scored the points they needed.

Tensions were high up in the air now as Shiratorizawa managed to score another point, marking their own match point.

Just when (Y/N) thought it was the end, they all watched as Tsukishima entered back again, ready to join the rest of the team.

Having run out of time-outs, it was all up to the boys now to define how the match was going to end. (Y/N)’s ears ringed with adrenaline coursing through her veins as she watched the ball fly back and forward.

And then it happened. Faster than anyone could’ve seen it coming, Hinata came flying from the back, no one could stop him as his hand hit the ball and sent it flying to the other side of the net.

The world stopped as the referee blew the whistle for one final time.

It was over.

Karasuno 21 – Shiratorizawa 19.

Had (Y/N) not been holding on to Yui’s hand so tightly since the beginning of the match, she was sure she would’ve jumped down from the stands. Tears of joy fell from her eyes and she could not stop them as she watched the boys cry and scream in happiness as they celebrated their victory.

Without truly knowing what she was doing or where she was going, her feet quickly carried her running down the steps and towards the double doors to the court. She could faintly hear Yui, Chizuru and Aihara call for her but her legs carried her regardless.

“My brother is one of the players there!” a tall, blonde man was trying to convince the security guard to let him go through to the court to no avail and (Y/N) had half a mind to just push him out of the way and enter the court regardless.

She could see Suga still crying with Asahi and Daichi and felt like a hand squeezed at her heart as she ached to go to him. She knew she wasn’t going to be able to go in so she decided to go back, trying to calm herself down for the award ceremony.

“Are you related to one of the other boys?” the blonde guy asked as they defeatedly walked back towards the stands. “I’m Tsukishima Akiteru, Kei’s big brother” he introduced himself with a soft smile and she returned it.

“Not really, I’m just really close to some of the third years” she explained, “I’m (L/N) (Y/N), nice to meet you, Tsukishima-san”

“Ah, nice to meet you too” he said with a blush on his cheeks at being addressed so formally. They made the rest of the walk back in silence and she stood next to him close to the edge as they watched the rest of the ceremony fly by with the boys accepting their medals.

She could feel butterflies in her stomach as Suga stepped up next to Daichi to accept the trophies.

Tears prickled her eyes and she sniffled as she watched the team thank the crowds and then take their final bows to the other team.

(Y/N) quietly excited the building along with the rest of the crowd as she waited for the teams to change and exit as well.

* * *

“Kou!” she called as she jogged up to catch up with the team. The grey-haired boy turned around with a smile at the sound of her voice and she tackled him in a hug. After being subject to so many of her surprise hugs, he reacted quickly this time, wrapping his arms around her waist and spinning her around, “I’m so incredibly proud of you, you were amazing”

“Well I did promise you we’d win, couldn’t break such a promise to you” he whispered in her hair. They heard a throat clearing behind them and they let go of each other with equally red blushes on their cheeks.

“Sorry to interrupt, but we have a bus to load and a meeting to hold” Daichi said as he approached them, followed closely by Asahi.

She felt tears spring back in her eyes as she watched the third years together and she couldn’t help but jump on them as well, her arms going up to bring them down in a hug that they awkwardly reciprocated, “you guys” she sniffled, “I knew you’d win, congratulations”

“Yeah, thanks” they said as they smiled and they separated, Daichi reminding Suga that they had to go.

“I’ll be there in a sec” he said and the two other boys walked away towards the bus where an excited group conformed of Nishinoya, Tanaka, Kageyama and Hinata jumped up and down still filled with the adrenaline of the win. Suga smiled fondly at them as (Y/N) stood closer to him, he looked down when he felt her hand hold his gently.

“I’ll see you later, I guess” she smiled and he nodded. He knew this wasn’t the moment, he wanted to be able to properly talk to her and for that, he’d have to wait. He squeezed her hand slightly, looking down at her neck to see that she was wearing the necklace he had given her.

“Yeah, I’ll drop by your house on my way back” he said and then, just so that he couldn’t chicken out later, he added, “there’s something I’d like to talk to you about”

“Can’t you tell me now?” she asked with that curious tilt to her head and those puppy dog eyes she used whenever she wanted to convince him of something. He shook his head with a smile this time. He had to be strong. If he was going to do this, he’d do it the right way.

“I’ll see you later” he said, letting go of her hand and walking away from her to join his team.

“That’s a real jerk move, you know, Sugawara?” she called back to him and he looked back with an amused grin on his face, raising his hands up in surrender as he started helping load up the bus.

She walked away with her heart doing weird jumps in her chest.


	8. Patience

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Patience - The Lumineers

The whole way back home was spent with her mulling over her thoughts. What could he have to say to her that he couldn’t tell her then?

She tried not to jump to conclusions, maybe it was nothing that important…

She had been about to tell him she loved him the night before. The way he looked at her and how he held her… was she too hopeful to think that he returned her feelings? She saw signs there, but being as she was, she didn’t like assuming things from people, despite having known Suga since they were both barely out of diapers.

As she walked into her house, she took her shoes off and put on her flippers, quickly greeting her mother in the garden and informing her of the team’s victory before making her way to the living room and making a straight-line for the piano to try to make her nerves go down.

She opened the top of it, quickly starting to play a tune that could transmit the way she felt at the moment. Both tranquil, yet excited, charged with electricity like the calm before a storm.

Her fingers quickly travelled through the keys, enveloping her in a melody that made her feel like the air finally cleared up. She closed her eyes, pouring all her emotions into the song as she played one song after the other.

She didn’t even hear the doorbell ring, nor the footsteps as her mother went to open the door and welcomed the visitor.

She finished playing and was startled when she heard a soft round of applause from behind her.

There he was, in all his golden glory. Suga was still wearing the black tracksuit -she had returned his jacket early that same morning before he left for the game-, his hair still slightly disheveled from the arduous match and everything that happened in the day. He was leaning against the frame of the door, his bag slung across his shoulders as he crossed his arms in front of his chest with his characteristically warm smile.

It took everything in her not to run up to him and kiss him right then.

“Perfect” he whispered, and even knowing that he meant the song she had just played, she couldn’t help but blush at the underlying affection he put into the word. Almost as if he meant it for her as well.

She stood up from the bench and walked over to where he was standing.

“What did you want to tell me?” she asked abruptly and he chuckled at her. She could see a small blush creep up to his cheeks and her heart nearly stopped as he leaned in to grab a hold of her hand.

He had done that so many times lately, they both had. They had always been affectionate towards each other. But the past couple of months those small touches, charged with so much affection and emotions had become so much more intense. She looked down as he intertwined their fingers, rubbing his thumb on the back of her hand.

 _Patience_ , she thought, _he’ll speak when he’s ready_. She tried to tell herself that but her heart was racing and it felt like everything was happening too quickly and not quickly enough at the same time.

He took a deep breath in, closing his eyes and his lips quivered slightly. Her eyes fixated on the beauty mark under his left eye and more than ever, she felt the strong urge to press a kiss into it.

“I love you” he breathed out and now the world truly screeched to a halt for her as she gaped at him.

She had definitely not been expecting that. Or had she? She wasn’t sure anymore and so she stood there frozen, unable to voice the many thoughts racing through her head.

“I- I” she stuttered and watched as his face turned comically red.

“I- you don’t need to say anything back” he quickly continued, pulling his hand from hers to shyly rub the back of his head as he looked anywhere but at her, “I just really wanted you to know, I’ve felt this way for a long time and I-”

Since her voice failed her, she decided that her best option to quiet down his words and his anxiety was to simply put her hands on his cheeks, pulling him down and pressing her lips against his in a searing kiss.

Now it was his turn to stand there frozen and his hands fell to his sides as he tried to comprehend what was happening. The soft sigh that left her lips shook him, then, and he finally put one hand on her lower back, the other coming up to tangle into her hair as he held her there, reciprocating the kiss softly.

Heaven could’ve been filled with gold and sweet clouds and he would’ve pushed it aside for the feeling of her lips against his as they continued the kiss.

Air ran short, though, and they had to separate their lips, she wrapped her arms around his neck and he brought both his arms around her waist to hold her close.

“In case that wasn’t clear enough,” she smirked at him, her cheeks were flushed and he brought a hand up to cup one side of her face, feeling the warmth of her skin under his fingers, “I love you too, Kou”

* * *

Months passed after that and things didn’t change too much between them.

As so many people -their parents, Daichi and even Asahi- so kindly and discretely pointed out, they had already been together, the only two idiots who didn’t realize it were just themselves.

The biggest change was that they now would unabashedly stare at each other with a lovesick gaze that had everyone asking for insulin, lest they die of a saccharine overdose.

December came and went and as Nationals approached, so did the appointment she had secured with the board of admissions at TCM. Being that the program she was applying for was mostly practical, she’d have to audition to earn her spot. She’d be making the trip to Tokyo with the Volleyball team, since her audition fell between the dates of the matches and she’d also use that trip to go support them.

She had been trying to work on her compositions, but none convinced her fully. Until one afternoon, watching snowflakes falling down through the window of her living room while cuddling up to Suga for warmth, she jumped up.

“What’s going on?” he asked confused and she quickly ushered him to stand up, guiding him towards the entrance.

“Go! I need to work on a song” she explained haphazardly and he just looked at her like she had gone crazy.

“And I can’t be here for that? I’ve heard you play a million times before” he argued but she was already walking back to the living room, leaving him behind in a confused flurry as he chuckled at her antics and put on his shoes and coat to make his way back home.

Once she had the melody in her head she made quick work of writing down the notes, scratching down the ones that didn’t sound perfect in her head.

She ended up siting in the bench in front of the piano, musical sheets all over her as she worked to perfect the tune.

“This is one of your most beautiful compositions, sweetheart” her father commented from the entrance as she finished touching up the last few notes.

Darkness had fallen outside a long time ago and she glanced up at the clock to realize that it was a little over midnight. She yawned and stretched her back and arms.

“Are you just now getting home?” she asked as she eyed his white coat. He sighed, nodding as he took off the coat and left his bag on the floor next to the couch. He plopped down, his fingers massaging the bridge of his nose. She sat down next to him and he wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

“Are you ready for Tokyo?” her father asked with a tired voice.

“As ready as I’ll ever be, I guess” she said and she could feel him chuckle next to her.

“You’ll do great things” he assured her and she blushed, “I know because I see the same look of determination in your eyes that I had when I was your age” he said and she could feel how proud he was, “of course, determination is not everything, even less so in the highly competitive path that you’ve chosen, but the fact that you’re brave enough to jump into it and give it your all already makes me prouder than you could ever imagine”

“Thank you, dad” she said, for lack of any other words that she felt could be enough.

They stayed there in silence and before she realized it, they had both nodded off and fallen asleep on the couch. A similar picture to how they had done it when she was just a baby and he’d nurse her back to sleep during the nights.


	9. Tokyo

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tokyo - Jeremiah Fraites

Tokyo was a buzzling city, filled with so many people and she felt like she could get lost in a second were it not for the hand wrapped around hers grounding her where she stood.

Luckily, the inn they were staying at was a bit further away from the more active places of the city. Just a short bus ride away from TCM’s campus where she’d have to face the admission board for her audition the next day and her nerves were about to drive her crazy.

“You’re spacing out” Suga whispered close to her ear and she could feel her skin tingling where his breath touched her skin. He squeezed her hand with an encouraging smile. “It’ll go well, they’ll love you”

“What if they don’t?” she asked with a small voice.

Not even Sakamoto-sensei’s encouraging parting words had served enough to quell her nervousness as he had said goodbye to her along with her parents at the school the day before.

“Well, then we release Hinata and Nishinoya on them” he simply shrugged and she huffed out an incredulous laugh. He grinned at her.

“Suga-san’s right, (L/N)-senpai!” Yachi said excitedly from her side and she smiled down at the girl. After having introduced themselves and hung out during practices while she waited for Suga to be done along with Shimizu, the small girl had grown quite fond of her, and the affections were mutual. She had even come over to her house to listen to her play more than once and the blonde girl already proclaimed herself as a fan, “you’re an amazing artist, I’m sure whatever song you’ve chosen will knock their socks off”

(Y/N) and Suga looked at each other with smirks on their faces. The conversation was interrupted as they were all called to go inside to register at the inn.

(Y/N) sighed. Tomorrow would come when it had to come, there was no point in being nervous now.

* * *

The team had two games that day, one in the morning and the other one a few hours away. Considering the location of the sport’s center was close enough to the campus, she’d have enough time to watch the first game before she had to leave.

She joined the Neighborhood Association in the stands as they all cheered for the team during the first match that ended with a victory for the boys.

Time flew by when you had so much to do.

Before she realized it, she was already kissing Suga goodbye, him calling out a quick good luck before she flew out of the big Olympic center and quickly made her way to the bus stop, making sure she knew which bus she had to go in.

As much as she had managed to calm herself down, anxiousness managed to wrap its icy tentacles around her and leave her in a puddle of nerves.

Her leg couldn’t stay still and she bounced it lightly all the way to the bus stop where she went down and navigated her way though the streets until she found the big, impressive building.

Asking for directions in the reception, she was guided by a tall and elegant woman into the building where the auditorium was.

If the theatre where her recital had taken place last fall was big, this place was gigantic. Rows upon rows of seats in a half moon formation surrounding the enormous stage where a big, black piano stood.

“I’ll take you backstage so you can register with the stage manager” the woman next to her instructed and she followed her in a daze as she admired the architecture of the place around her. The red velvet curtains with golden rims that brushed against the light wooden floors of the stage. The soft black carpet on the steps on the corridors along the rows of cushioned seats.

Everything looked elegant and sophisticated and she felt tiny following the woman in front of her in her simple dark blue dress.

She registered, thanking her guide as she left her backstage in the company of a stage manager and another assistant guided her to some chairs where she’d have to wait for her turn to arrive. There were other people arriving now, other young boys and girls getting ready to audition and through the small gap she could see through the curtains, she could see people walking in. Five people sat down on a judge’s table that had been prepared at the center of the auditorium, where they’d have perfect view and sound of all of the performances.

She could see Kizami-san sitting in the middle, talking amicably with his fellow professors and her heart jumped up to her throat at the reality that this was happening now. In an hour, she’d be walking up to that stage and performing in front of them. In front of people who actually did this for a living.

She would’ve paid good money for a hole to open up in the ground and swallow her whole right at that moment and her hands subconsciously went up to her neck to touch the necklace that rested on top of her collarbones.

(Y/N) closed her eyes, taking a deep breath in and out as she willed her heart to stop thumping.

If only Suga was here, she’d only have to look at him and that wave of calm and warmth that he always gave her when he walked into a room would be enough to comfort her. She hoped he’d make it in time, he had said that he’d race here as soon as the matches ended.

Time passed and she listened to the other people playing as they went up into the stage and auditioned. There was so much talent around her and she almost felt insignificant as she heard round after round of applause from the small crowd that had gathered outside with each passing performance.

Her throat felt dry and closed up at the same time as she tried to swallow around a knot.

“(L/N)-san? You’re up next” a stage assistant called for her as the girl who was now currently playing a lovely piece in her cello was nearing the end of her song.

Her knees felt wobbly as she made her way to the side of the stage. Her eyes focused solely on the piano in the center as she willed herself to breathe slowly and even out her heartbeat.

With a few final words from the admission board, the girl before her was dismissed and she bowed as she stepped out of the stage with her instrument in tow.

“Step out” the assistant behind her nudged her gently and she swallowed thickly as she started walking towards the center of the stage. Finally looking towards the audience, she looked at Kizami-san, who gave her an encouraging nod.

“Could you please tell us your name, instrument and the song you will be performing?” an older woman with a stern face asked her, looking at her over the rims of her glasses. (Y/N) cleared her throat before answering.

“(L/N) (Y/N), I’ll be playing the piano, the song I’ll be performing will be one of my own compositions” she said and the five members of the board looked at her with surprised looks on their faces. She could hear murmuring from the crowd and when she looked away from the jury table, her heart skipped a beat.

Not only was Suga there, beaming brightly at her, but the whole team -along with Yachi, Shimizu, Coach Ukai and Takeda-sensei- was there silently cheering for her -as silently as Hinata and Noya could be, thankfully they restrained themselves enough to just smile brightly at her and give her equally enthusiastic thumbs ups-. Her nervousness seemed to ebb away as quickly as it had come as she smiled at them.

“And what’s the name of the piece you’ve composed?” Kizami-san asked her curiously, calling back her attention from the team of crows taking their seats as close to the stage as they possibly could.

She smiled, briefly looking up at her boyfriend before looking back at the jury.

“For Kou” she answered simply. She smiled as she could hear Daichi and Asahi tease Suga, who quickly quieted them down. She knew that if she looked at him, he’d be up for competition against a batch of tomatoes with the blush on his cheeks.

“Well, (L/N)-san, you may start” Kizami-san motioned with one hand and she bowed before taking a seat in the bench.

Taking a deep breath, her fingers rested in an oh-so-familiar way atop the keys of the piano. Counting up to four in her head, she started pouring her soul into the instrument, letting all the feelings and emotions that had inspired flow from her fingers as they danced along the keys.

The melody went from slow and calm up to a slow crescendo that filled the room in that warm feeling that came with listening to something that was written with a lot of intent.

As the peak came, she could feel herself sway on the bench as her hands travelled, bringing the song to a slow end. A breeze. A whisper. A familiar and warm hand holding onto hers tightly. She closed her eyes with the final note, letting go of the tears she hadn’t noticed collected in the corner of her eyes.

She opened her eyes as she heard the applause from the audience and the five members of the board as she stood up and bowed down in a silent thanks.

She looked up to see Suga smiling down at her, she wasn’t sure if it was the light or not, but she could’ve sworn there were tears in his cheeks. Asahi was definitely crying next to him and she smiled as the team continued to applaud.

She could tell the board had some words for her and so she motioned for her friends to quiet down.

“That was lovely, (L/N)-san” the stern-looking woman said, there was a soft quirk of her lips that (Y/N) thought she could take for a smile and her heart was finally able to beat in peace once more. “You’ll be hearing from the admission board as soon as the selection process is done with”

“Thank you very much for your consideration” she said as she bowed down once more and exited the stage.

Once she was out of the spotlight, her knees finally gave way and she thanked the fact that a stage assistant was right there about to hand her a water bottle so she could hold on to someone and not fall.

“That was beautiful” the young woman holding her smiled and she returned it, thanking her for the water as she found strength in her legs again.

“Do I have to fill out any more papers now?” she asked and the assistant shook her head.

“It’s all done with, if you’ve already sent your applications” she explained, “you can stay and watch the rest of the performances, or leave, it’s up to you”

“Ok, thank you, I’ll go join my friends now” (Y/N) answered and with a small wave to the woman, she exited the venue and walked towards the entrance hall of the building.

“(L/N)-senpai!” an excited mop of ginger hair jumped up towards her as Hinata ran up to her, rapidly telling her all about both the matches they had won and how impressive her performance was. She could barely keep up with how fast the boy was talking and she was grateful for Daichi when he showed up and calmed the boy down.

“That was a great song, (Y/N)” Daichi smiled and she thanked him, receiving congratulations from everyone around her and blushing harder by the second.

Finally, she located the face she had been looking for as Suga walked up to her with a mischievous smirk on his face. The rest of the team made quick work of distracting themselves with other things around them to give them a little bit of privacy.

“So, that was an interesting song, I wonder what the inspiration was” he said with that teasing tone she loved so much.

“Well, there’s this guy I think is pretty cute, you might know him, he plays volleyball” she teased back as he wrapped his arms around her waist, bringing her close to him.

“Hmm, well you’ll have to thank him properly for inspiring such a lovely song” he said, his brown eyes were threatening to intoxicate her as she smiled up at him.

“Will a kiss be enough?” she asked, pressing her lips to his softly.

“I don’t think so, that was a really great song after all” he whispered as they leaned into each other, “I’d say a lifetime supply of kisses would do”

“Who am I to say no to that?” she said, smiling as they both leaned back in for another kiss. Her hands went up to tangle on the soft strands of his hair and she hummed contentedly.

“I love you” he whispered as they broke away.

“I love you, too” she whispered back.

“I love both of you guys, but it’s time to go” Tanaka called from where the rest of the group was waiting for them, “we have strategies for tomorrow to discuss”

And so, with Nationals in full rage, and their whole lives waiting in front of them, Suga and her walked hand in hand towards their group of friends.

Nothing was entirely certain, and a lot of changes were going to come. The only thing (Y/N) was sure of was that no matter what happened, she’d always be thankful for the golden warmth that enveloped her from the boy who walked along with her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you, for making it this far along with me. 
> 
> I hope the journey was enjoyable and that we see each other in another story.


End file.
